Features
Anchoring the Firm Culture in Solid Rock
Why do formerly great law firms fail and go under? The author feels that they lost the anchor to their core values, and then started drifting into issues and concerns that eventually destroyed them from within. This article explains what can be done to keep the anchor holding.
Features
Brokerage Windows in Retirement Plans
On Aug. 21, 2014, the DOL published a request for information (RFI) regarding the use of so-called "brokerage windows" under retirement plans. The RFI is one of the more recent developments surrounding what has become an increasingly controversial topic regarding the investment of Section 401(k) and other participant-direct retirement plans.
Features
The LPM Maturity Model
Unless you are deaf to the present realities in today's legal marketplace, you now hear the steady drumbeat of client-focused legal service delivery: a persistent rhythm driving you toward Legal Project Management (LPM). Clients are insisting that firms price and deliver services that fit their tolerance for risk, produce excellent results and keep the work within budget ' all in the most efficient manner.
Features
Connecting the Legal and Tax Departments
Now that the personal tax return deadline has passed, it might be a good time to consider your company's tax needs. Counsel at a Fortune 500 company recently told a colleague of ours that all of their tax matters are handled entirely outside of the legal department. This arrangement is not good. Corporate counsel and accountants must work together to bring the full measure of the company's resources to bear on tax-related issues.
Features
Third Circuit Revives Challenge to Firm's Debt Collection Practices
A lawsuit over a law firm's foreclosure practices on behalf of Bank of America has been revived by the Third Circuit. But while the appeals court revived the plaintiff's federal claims, it upheld the dismissal of the state law claims after it predicted how the Pennsylvania Supreme Court would rule on the issue.
Features
<i>Social Media Scene:</i> Identifying the Utility of Social Networks
You've heard it a thousand times: You need to market yourself and your firm on social media. And it's true, you do, but maybe not for the reasons you think, and maybe not on the networks that self-proclaimed "experts" tell you to be active on.
Features
<i>Marketing Tech:</i> Law Firms Are on a Collective Mission to Evolve, Adapt and Succeed
About a year ago, the author launched a cloud-based technology platform that provides weekly networking programs and accountability software to help lawyers execute their business development activities. Here's how it works.
Columns & Departments
<b><i>At the Intersection</i></b>: The Human Barrier to LPM Technology
The author recently returned from the World Master of Law Firm Management Conference in Sydney, Australia, where she compared notes with folks deeply invested in the future of legal technology. They agreed that when it comes to Legal Project Management (LPM), the platforms, tools, templates and technology are evolving at the speed of ' frustration.
Features
<b><i>Product Review:</b></i>Time Tracker by eBillity
Time tracking and billing, an unpleasant and time-consuming distraction at the best of times, became far more painful than it needed to be.
Features
Transitioning Associates from Worker Bees to Rainmakers
There comes a day when the partners of your law firm will tell their associates that they need to build their own clientele. If you are the associate, this is a chilling moment. And if you are a marketing professional, here is how you can help.
Need Help?
- Prefer an IP authenticated environment? Request a transition or call 800-756-8993.
- Need other assistance? email Customer Service or call 1-877-256-2472.
MOST POPULAR STORIES
- Protecting Innovation in the Cyber World from Patent TrollsWith trillions of dollars to keep watch over, the last thing we need is the distraction of costly litigation brought on by patent assertion entities (PAEs or "patent trolls"), companies that don't make any products but instead seek royalties by asserting their patents against those who do make products.Read More ›
- Meet the Lawyer Working on Inclusion Rider LanguageAt the Oscars in March, Best Actress winner Frances McDormand made “inclusion rider” go viral. But Kalpana Kotagal, a partner at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll had already worked for months to write the language for such provisions. Kotagal was developing legal language for contract provisions that Hollywood's elite could use to require studios and other partners to employ diverse workers on set.Read More ›
- From the PTO to the FDA: What to Consider When Branding Clinical TrialsThe legal implications of branding generally arise initially for companies during the process of selecting a company name and any initial product or service names. For drug development companies, however, careful consideration should also be paid to the implications of branding a clinical trial.Read More ›
- Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar InvestigationsThis article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.Read More ›